PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo is a horror visual novel written and created for me, personally. I do not know how director and scenario writer Takanari Ishiyama tapped into my brain to manifest this game's blend of horror, fourth-wall-breaking, and supernatural sleuthing into existence, but I sure am glad he did.

PARANORMASIGHT's format is akin to Death Mark and Raging Loop, where the player takes up the role of the protagonist in a deadly scenario and must traverse branching timelines to solve the game's mystery. Its multi-protagonist approach and setting set PARANORMASIGHT apart. The setting is as much of a character as any human or spirit in the game. Set in the 1980s, the story takes place in the very real Sumida City, so much so that the location's tourism bureau cooperated with the game's development, something I can't help but find amusing given everything that takes place and the sometimes less-than-favorable descriptions of industrialization in the area. Imagine if San Francisco's tourism bureau handed over a check for a game that openly discusses all the trash in the bay and floating body parts become a plot point, but I digress. The game's soundtrack, composed by Hidenori Iwasaki (SaGa: Scarlet Grace, Chocobo Grand Prix), authentically invokes the period's television dramas. However, I wouldn't have objected to at least one city pop track.

A visual novel can live and die by its characterization. Raging Loop worked wonders by introducing the player to an everyman protagonist that gradually devolves into a misanthropic killer. PARANORMASIGHT lacks a grander character arc since its story spread out from the perspectives of four different characters, but each character's plot thread weaves into the overarching mystery in meaningful ways that best highlight their various perspectives as they come into contact with the Curses and consider following through with a ritual described into a recently discovered historical document that could allow them to raise the dead. Yakko, a no-holds-barred sukeban-type, is suspicious of the circumstances surrounding her best friend's suicide. Harue Shigima is the neglected wife of a police officer whose son was murdered in a botched kidnapping. Tetsuo Tatsumi is a grizzled detective in an estranged relationship with his adult daughter. Finally, Shogo Okiie is a typical office worker whose recent friend died suddenly while they were investigating The Seven Mysteries of Honjo. You'll easily grow sympathetic to most of the cast; there's not an obnoxious character in the bunch, and most act pretty reasonably, given the circumstances. Yakko's storyline stands out the most, and I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to investigate as two high school girls; pretty much every game I've played in this genre has starred men.

The crux of the supernatural mystery centers on The Seven Mysteries of Honjo, each related to a specific curse. You can read about them in detail on the game's official website, but this is the one area of the game that didn't live up to its potential. For much of the game, you will not be utilizing any Curses in your possession, making the first chapter somewhat of a misnomer. In the game's opening, the player confronts several other Curse-wielding characters and attempts to outmaneuver them to ultimately resurrect someone. This story option doesn't appear again for most of the game, at least not in a meaningful way, even when certain characters consider going in this direction. Likely fully integrating this mechanic would have significantly expanded the game's story options and was perhaps beyond the scope of what the creators were trying to accomplish...but it's also the whole premise the story was built upon. Likewise, the characters have an inventory that doesn't factor into most of the game. A few situations require breaking the fourth wall à la the Metal Gear Solid series, which initially seems clever but is not utilized often enough.

While missed opportunities keep PARANORMASIGHT from being a truly standout game, I still enjoyed the process of uncovering the story, even if it goes into some truly off-the-wall directions in its end-game content. One turn of events got a loud guffaw out of me, but I think Ishiyama was in on it. He must have been. The tone isn't wholly dour either, even though we're dealing with many mutilated corpses and very dark content. The characters' rapport with one another is often quite friendly, which keeps the game from leaning into misanthropy or despair. That said, if you are sensitive to storylines featuring sexual assault and child murder, PARANORMASIGHT will be hard to stomach.

PARANORMASIGHT is a worthwhile entry in the horror visual novel genre, and I hope its success might guarantee another iteration down the line. Its use of transformative folklore is intriguing, and its cast of characters makes up for some missed mechanic and diverging choice opportunities. Its length also makes it a satisfactory choice if you want to test the waters with horror visual novels.

Anime News Network was provided a review copy of PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo for the Nintendo Switch. The game is now available on Steam, Switch, and mobile devices.